On Saturday 30 January, Anne Schwanewilms made her US recital debut at the Kennedy Center with a bad cold on a bitterly cold and snowy night in the nation's capital. Telling the audience 'even if I have a cold and the weather is so cold, don't fear - even when I fall down!' The audience loved her and her reviews were terrific. She sang songs by Richard Strauss and Gustav Mahler and was wonderfully supported by her accompanist, Malcolm Martineau. The Washington Post said she 'gave the crowd an evening to remember' and after the performance one audience member was quoted as saying "If she's that fantastic when she's sick, I can't wait to hear her when she's well."